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The claw of the conciliator

The claw of the conciliator

Dark FantasyFantasy
Pages
254
Published
1981
Language
English

Synopsis

Continuing Severian's journey north toward the city of Thrax, this second volume finds him in possession of the Claw of the Conciliator — a small jewel-like artifact of uncertain origin that appears capable of healing wounds and restoring the dead. His path is complicated by renewed interference from Agia; by a sojourn among the rebel forces of the revolutionary Vodalus, where he is put to deeply disturbing use; and by a growing attachment to Jonas, a mysterious companion whose true nature — involving ancient technology and a history spanning centuries — is gradually disclosed. The volume contains a theatrical performance embedded within the narrative, a play-within-the-novel that enacts the series' larger themes of death and renewal in miniature. Winner of the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1981, it deepens the theological and philosophical resonances of the series while expanding its world in unexpected directions.

Prose complexity
7/10

Vibe

DarkAtmospheric
QuestMorally Grey

Genres

Dark Fantasy Fantasy High Fantasy Literary Fiction Science Fiction Social Sci-Fi

About the author

G
Gene Wolfe

Gene Wolfe (1931–2019) was an American science fiction and fantasy author widely regarded as one of the most accomplished prose stylists the field has produced. He was born in Brooklyn, New York, served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, and earned a degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Houston. He worked for many years as an industrial engineer — most notably on the development of the machine that cooks Pringles potato chips — before becoming a full-time writer in the la...

Characters

SeverianProtagonist

A member of the Seekers for Truth and Penitence, a guild of torturers, who has become obsessed with finding his lost love Agia.

AgiaAntagonist

Returns to conspire against Severian, still seeking his death and the sword Terminus Est.

JonasSupporting

A mysterious companion whose origins involve far-future technology; one of the series' most carefully constructed character mysteries.

All characters in The claw of the conciliator

Frequently asked questions

  • Did The Claw of the Conciliator win any awards?

    It won the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1981, making it one of the most decorated novels on the science fiction/fantasy border. It was also nominated for the Hugo Award and the World Fantasy Award that year, and won the Locus Fantasy Award in 1982.

  • What is the Claw of the Conciliator, and what does it do?

    The Claw is a small jewel-like artifact that Severian carries throughout this volume, described as capable of miraculous effects including healing wounds and apparently reviving the dead. Its true nature is never definitively explained. Wolfe drew deliberately on Catholic imagery of holy relics — objects whose power derives not from themselves but from what passes through them — and the Claw functions as the novel's central theological symbol.

  • Who is Jonas, and why is he significant?

    Jonas is a traveler Severian meets in the cells of the House Absolute, the Autarch's vast underground palace. He presents himself as a sailor and wanderer, but his true nature — involving ancient technology and a history spanning centuries — is gradually disclosed through this volume and into the next. He is one of Wolfe's most carefully constructed character mysteries.

  • Do I need to read The Shadow of the Torturer first?

    Yes. The Claw of the Conciliator begins immediately where The Shadow of the Torturer ends with no recap. The four BotNS volumes function as one continuous narrative; beginning here means missing the establishment of Severian's character, his relationship with Thecla, and the reason for his exile.

  • What is the play performed for the rebel forces?

    While among Vodalus's underground army, Severian witnesses a theatrical performance that enacts the series' larger themes of death and renewal as story-within-the-story. Wolfe embeds an entire secondary narrative here, complete with its own allegorical characters, in what readers consider one of the most formally ambitious passages of the tetralogy.

  • What is the House Absolute?

    The House Absolute is the vast, largely subterranean palace of the Autarch — Urth's sovereign ruler — a structure so enormous it contains its own ecosystems, courts, and dungeons. Severian's infiltration of it in this volume, alongside Jonas, is one of the novel's central set pieces and introduces the Autarch as a presence in the series.